


Kafkaesque Dreams

by MiceAndIce



Category: D. Gray-man
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Catholic School, Gen, Religion, Witchcraft, Witches
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-29
Updated: 2017-01-29
Packaged: 2018-09-20 14:58:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,099
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9497123
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiceAndIce/pseuds/MiceAndIce
Summary: Of all the places he thought Cross would move them to, Allen Walker never expected it to be a small, Catholic town that somehow always managed to feel unsettling. It would be unfair to entirely blame the town itself for the weirdness however; the daughter of one of the most influential families in the area taking a specific interest in him may just be at fault too.Though, Allen can't pretend that Catholicism is completely comforting either.AU: Witches in Modern Time; the Noah family is a cult





	

**Author's Note:**

> So... I've been writing this for over a year now. It has over 55,000 words/100+ pages so far and I'm still not done. I've been having some difficulty finding inspiration to finish so I thought maybe if I posted the first chapter online, I'd have that outside motivation to keep writing.
> 
> Weird AU, right? It's very self-indulgent, haha. The cult-ish stuff and magic the Noah are involved in isn't specifically based on any real religion; it's fantasy magic, and I tried to be creative with it. If you are very sensitive about religious subjects, however, I recommend you don't read this. I do mention Catholicism at several points, and it's usually not that positive. I wouldn't categorize it as religion bashing at all, but I know some people are super sensitive to this sort of stuff so here's my warning just in case.
> 
> A note on my characterization of Allen Walker in this story: It will be a sort of cross between his Red self and the mask of Mana he has. I feel like it is more appropriate for an AU where the whole Mana-akuma scene doesn't exist and thus cannot traumatize him like it did in canon.

Ringing church bells were a common and obnoxiously loud sound in this new town Allen found himself in. They beat out the chirps of morning birds and the humming and revving of car engines, and although the boy would have preferred the latter sounds, he couldn’t deny that the bells held a certain charm. On Sunday mornings when it was time for him to contribute to the community, Allen Walker, with a golden cross in his hands, walked down the center aisle of the church in the center of Ordeville, passing pews filled with his classmates. The enormous stained glass windows that spread across the church walls displayed imagery of all sorts of stories from the Bible. Saint Michael's victory over Satan loomed over the parishioners, colored light throwing the altar into a mass of a dozen brilliant hues; the Blessed Virgin Mary shined sunlight on the devoted men and women in the pews, illuminating them with both brightness and an aura of a sacred power.

The altar boys continued down the center aisle and all approached the massive cross hanging from the ceiling, heading towards their designated seats around the altar. Mass continued as it always did, full of kneeling and standing and singing and Latin. Everyone prayed and prayed, but Allen wondered how many people were here just because they needed to keep up a good public image and how many were here because they actually believe in all this stuff. Allen was certainly part of the former group; he was only in this Catholic school because of his guardian's own beliefs. The alcoholic bastard was the master of sinning, but he freaked out when he found a few drawings of pentacles in Allen's notebook. Just the memory of Cross's rant and lecturing made Allen roll his eyes. How many times did he have to tell that hypocritical devil that he was just messing around with those drawings? Apparently he could never say it enough times.

Allen wasn’t even anything close to a Satanist, as his guardian had worried he’d become; he simply got bored in math class and started to doodle. Nothing more, nothing less. He had scoffed when Cross had accused him of worshipping the devil since pentacles weren’t even symbols of Satan, but there was no convincing the man. The Sigil of Baphomet was actually a satanic symbol he had informed Cross oh so sarcastically, and Cross had moved their asses over to this town so quickly Allen couldn’t even get out a “just kidding.” He didn't want to be a part of the church, but it wasn't like he was going to start sacrificing babies or anything.

Speaking of Satanism, the rumors around Allen’s new school concerning it were quite hilarious. He wouldn't be surprised if an outright witch hunted started anytime now. A few months before Allen arrived at the school, one of the teachers had apparently been accused of being a "Satan-worshipping Luciferian" (when Kanda, one of the friends Allen had made when he moved here not too long ago, had told him that, Allen had to resist the urge to laugh). When the principal caught wind of this rumor, the school launched a pretty intense investigation on Mr. Mikk from what Allen heard. They couldn't find any real dirt on him in the end, so the school determined that the rumor was simply that, a rumor.

Lavi, another one of Allen’s new friends, still swears though that he saw Mikk burning incriminating evidence in his fireplace one night at 3:24 AM. When Allen asked Lavi how on earth he knew that, Lavi said he had started his own personal investigation. When Allen asked how on earth Lavi knew what Mikk was doing in his own home at 3:24 in the morning, Lavi simply answered, "Don't worry about it, man."

Mikk's niece, Road Kamelot, was also an interesting case; she was Mikk's relative so she unfortunately received some backlash from the rumors. She was the class’s honorary most-likely-to-actually-be-a-witch girl; frankly, Allen wasn't surprised that she was blessed with that particular label. The girl dressed herself in some questionable clothes, spoke some questionably blasphemous words, and was particularly wicked in the pranks she pulled. She wasn't targeted by bullies despite the accusations because of her family's influence and her own insistence that anyone who messed with her would be cursed. Her father, a fairly well known politician in the area, tried to control her, but he adored her too much; he hesitated to punish her in any way that could be effective. Everytime he tried to forbid her from sweets or give her extra chores, she would simply pout and give him a kiss on the forehead and his fatherly heart would melt. She was loveable that way: oddly frightening, but very charismatic.

She was sitting in the front row of the church at this moment, looking like an angel in her white dress and the flower clip in her hair. Sometimes Allen wondered if she really was a witch in her own right. She seemed untouchable from his experience so far in this town. Maybe if he asked, she would tell him; Lenalee, the first friend he had made at Ordeville, told him (well, warned him) that she heard from a friend that Road had a crush on him (another rumor? Perhaps not, judging by the way she kept glancing at him in particular).

That girl was definitely going to pull some sort of prank soon, Allen thought; she'd been acting particularly suspicious lately which in her case meant that lately she'd been acting perfectly normal. Usually, she’d be creeping around corners and making weird references to Satan, but lately she’d only been interested in the latest episodes of some popular television shows; now that Allen thought about it, her and her whole family was weird like that: normal behavior was a sign of trouble with them.

Allen pulled his attention away from Road and the other various faces in the crowd and focused on making himself look as though he were paying attention to the sermon and praying. After another forever of praying and kneeling, mass finally ended, and they were all left to do whatever they wished. Stepping outside of the golden church, the boy was greeted by a shower of rain. Several churchgoers ran past him, trying to reach their cars quickly in an attempt to avoid as much rain as possible.

Allen didn't particularly mind the rain, and it wasn't even raining too harshly at the moment; however, he was a bit disappointed as he, Lavi, Kanda, and Lenalee had all made plans to spend the day in the park. He began to walk in the direction of his home, but the rain suddenly stopped showering him. He looked to the side and saw Lenalee standing with him, holding an umbrella over both their heads. She was always smart enough to check the weather report for the week. He smiled and opened his mouth to say hello, but the girl beat him to it.

"Hey, Allen! What are you going to be doing with your day now that it's raining?" Her smile had a hint of something teasing in it; she had told them over and over that their plans to spend the day in the park would be ruined by the rain, but the rest of the week had just been so sunny that they didn't see any reason as to why it would suddenly start raining on Sunday. They should really listen to her more, Allen thought, but they'll probably keep doing stupid nonsense anyway.

"I think I'm just going to go home and catch up on some school work," he answered. Lenalee shot him a disapproving glance. Today was a day of rest and all that jazz, of course.

"Don't give me that look, Lenalee. Come on, I'm sure God won't mind that I'm studying his scripture and how it relates to the theory of evolution or whatever." Was that a risky thing to say? He peeked at Lenalee's face, but he couldn't quite read her expression. Sometimes she would make that weird face whenever someone talked about God. Allen was pretty sure it was a poker face of some kind, but for what purpose? Her expression reverted back to her look that said "Walker, you better watch it," and then changed the topic to some silly small talk about classes.

The both of them waited outside of the church for a bit to see if Lavi and Kanda were still there, but after a few minutes they decided to head home. Lenalee lived a bit farther than Allen did from the church, but both their houses were in the same direction, so they set off together under the umbrella.

It was difficult to talk while avoiding the rain and huddling under the umbrella, so they walked in silence until they reached Allen's house. They parted with a promise to make new plans for next week, and Allen left the safety of the umbrella and ran the few feet to the door while Lenalee headed home.

Entering the house, Allen listened carefully for any sound of Cross being home. No sound greeted his ears besides the muffled pattering of the rain. Satisfied at the knowledge of his guardian not being there, Allen ran up the stairs to his room. Flopping down on the bed, he sighed and relaxed for a few moments. Was his bed always this soft? He decided to take an hour for himself before beginning his homework. He reached for his iPod to listen to some music, but just as he was about to hit play, the doorbell rang.

He groaned; apparently, he _ was _ going to have to deal with Cross's bullshit today. He reluctantly put down his iPod and headed downstairs to answer the door.

Allen opened the door and was not met with the expected long red hair and stench of alcohol. Instead, a girl that smelled of things decidedly sweeter than beer stood in front of him. She still wore her white dress and flower clipping in her hair, but now the girl held a little box in one hand and an umbrella in the other. Her expression was one of odd fascination, eyes wide and head tilted just enough to be noticeable.

"Allen Walker, right?" Road Kamelot said. "We haven't talked before, but I'm sure you know who I am. Can we talk?"

It was a fairly unexpected request, and Allen hesitated to let her in. He knew in some little communities people liked to pop into each other’s homes for unexpected visits, but he’d been in this town for over a month and he hadn’t noticed that particular tradition being a normal part of Ordeville. Besides, he only knew this girl through rumors and seeing her between classes, so he felt it strange that she’d randomly show up at his house. Sensing this, she pushed past him into the house before he could say anything, preventing him from refusing her entry. Allen felt insulted at this action, but he very well wasn't going to be forceful with a girl, no matter how badly she behaved.

"Sure, come on in, why not? It's not like you're going to just walk in here uninvited," Allen replied sarcastically. Allen was known as a polite boy, but certain people and behaviors simply brought out the sarcastic and biting in him; people pushing into his house was one of those behaviors that happened to tick him off.

Road strolled into the living room as if she owned the place, taking her time in examining the whole room before sitting down on the couch. She tapped the nearby lamp a few times, seemingly absorbed in it, but then she turned her attention towards Allen and stretched out on the couch.

"Nice place you have here."

Allen Walker wasn't sure whether or not she was being sarcastic. She probably was. The house wasn’t anything special; not big and flashy but not small and rundown either. It was just normal and boring.

He stood in the doorway of the living room, staring at the girl, both of them waiting; Allen waited for Road to explain her visit, and Road waited for Allen to acknowledge her comment. The situation turned into a sort of staring contest, with Allen being fairly annoyed and bored at the whole thing while Road seemed to be enjoying it. The silence was finally broken when the boy heaved a sigh and asked her what she wanted to talk about.

Road fiddled with the box in her hands and looked around a moment before sitting upright. She stood before speaking. "I want to talk to you about Mana."

Allen felt a pang in his heart at the sound of the man's name, and he had to take a moment before answering. The situation was odd enough with the girl showing up at his house out of nowhere, but now she had said a name he wouldn’t have expected her to say in a million years. How did she know about Mana? Allen hadn’t spoken about the man to anybody in this town, and he had hardly spoken about him at all since the man had died.

"Excuse me?" he finally managed.

Road Kamelot sighed before walking over to the teen and handing him the box she was holding. It was nothing special: the thing was fairly small, dully colored, and didn't weigh much. It was probably filled with papers or something equally light.

"This should help explain," she simply said before going back to the couch and sitting down.

Allen looked at her questioningly for a moment, wondering whether this was another one of her weird pranks, but then decided that a little box couldn't do much harm. What could possibly be inside it that would involve a prank? A spider? It couldn't be a big deal.

He opened the box and sharply inhaled when he saw what lay inside of it. There were little pictures inside, and while he didn't recognize everyone in the photos, there were some familiar faces. Faces like Mana's and Cross's. The scenes in the photos were the sort of stuff someone would find in a family photo album; pictures posed for in front of some nice scenery, everyone appearing happy. There wasn't anything unusual about them, besides the fact that Mana freaking Walker was in them. One of the photos had Mana standing with another man and a group of children. They were somewhere in the woods, and the man besides Mana looked so similar that Allen had to wonder if they were related. Mana hadn't ever mentioned anything to Allen about family though, so what were these pictures about? The children around the two of them seemed to be having a great time. They all had seemingly genuine smiles. The children caught Allen's attention in how familiar they seemed; Allen could have sworn he didn't recognize anybody in this photo besides Mana, but those boys and girls awaken a sense of familiarity in Allen. He observed the photo more carefully; maybe the kids were related to someone he knew? Mana looked very young, so this photo was probably very old; maybe he knew the older versions of the kids in the photo? He'd have to analyze more later. Allen looked through the other photos with the same scrutinizing eye, feeling incredibly creeped out by these photos of Mana and Cross. Neither of them ever mentioned having these friends or a family like this; they never referenced these scenes in any way, no stories, no ramblings. It was like a secret he wasn't suppose to know. Road was silent the entire time that Allen examined the photos, but when he looked at her again she ventured to ask a question.

"Mana was your previous guardian, right?" She was looking for confirmation more so than asking a question; Allen could tell by the tone her voice took on, solidly stating a fact rather than ending with a questioning inflection. He decided to skirt around the issue for a bit instead of answering the question; maybe she would give him some information about these photos indirectly.

"Why would you think that?" he asked. Road just waved her hand as though she were swatting a fly away, acting like none of this really mattered.

"I took a look at your record." Before Allen could question her about that particular action, she quickly added, "Don't worry about it."

Allen would very well worry about it, but that was for later. For now, he needed to know why Road had personal photos of Mana and Cross. He had been so close to Mana and he had never known about any of these people in the pictures, yet they all seemed to be a family or close friends of some kind; how did Road know about this? He glanced over them again.

"Why are you showing me these?" He felt like he wanted to interrogate her, demand to know where these were from, but he thought that such a direct approach wouldn't work with this girl, and besides, that would be awfully rude. The girl was a little devil in her own right, so he had to dance around the issues at hand like she was doing.

"I want to show you something," she said. Something else besides this? Allen's curiosity was certainly peaked. He tilted his head towards her, indicating his interest and signaling for her to continue.

"Come to my house in three days. You know where that is, right? Of course you do. Anyway, come alone and come at night. I'll explain everything if it all works out." As she explained her cryptic instructions, she began to get off the couch as though she was making to leave.

"You're not really just going to leave me with that?" Allen asked, one eyebrow raised in a mix of amusement and annoyance.

"I told you, I'll explain more in three days." Road swung her umbrella around before heading to the door.  She opened the door, but before she left, she twirled around to face Allen one more time. With a ridiculous smile on her face, she sang, "Bye, Allen!" and blew him a kiss. Then she was gone.

And with all that done, Allen was stuck standing in his living room with a box of photos of his dead foster father, more questions tumbling in his mind now than at any other point of time in his life.

**Author's Note:**

> Updates will not be regular. They likely will not be often. I am hoping that by posting this first chapter, I will feel more motivated again to finish this story. Get invested at your own risk.
> 
> If you do like the story though, please comment! Feedback always helps.
> 
> Thank you for reading :)


End file.
